1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a modular internal combustion engine comprising an engine housing with a crankshaft drive having at least one reciprocating piston in a cylinder, which acts on a crankshaft by means of a connecting rod, and a variable-speed gear box connected to the crankshaft via a disengaging clutch, and a gearbox output train which connects to at least one drive shaft of a vehicle.
2. The Prior Art
From AT 3.397 U1 an internal combustion engine for a motor cycle is known, in which the subassemblies for the engine are configured as modular units and are universally useable for at least two different cylinder configurations. This will permit realization of various performance classes and cylinder configurations at low cost and without complicated logistics. By its design this internal combustion engine is suitable only for motorcycles and not for other types of vehicles.
It is the object of the present invention to propose a multi-purpose internal combustion engine which may serve for a large number of design variants and has low production cost.